RIP Arthur Richman

[casty33]

If you ever covered baseball in New York, you had to know Arthur Richman. He was in PR, he was travel director, he was advisor to the owner. He was instrumental in convincing Steinbrenner to bring Joe Torre to NY to manage the Yankees. He was always there and I must say you'd be hard-pressed to find someone in baseball who didn't know him.

He has suffered for the last couple of years so I offer my sympathy to his wife, Martha, and anyone else who mourns Arthur's passing.

 

[The Big Ragu]

Richman was one of a kind. He really bridged the gap all the way from DiMaggio to Jeter. Under Steinbrenner, I think a lot of people held those "special advisor" titles, or whatever title Richman had, but Richman was more than just a part of Steinbrenner's people collection. He had a long, rich baseball life that anyone would envy, and he was a walking treasure trove of memories and some of the greatest stories you have ever heard. He lived through it all, and was a part of it, through some of those great Yankees dynasties. I always found him to be a really personable guy and happy to share what he had to offer with anyone he came across. He just loved the game; a real goodwill ambassador for baseball. A lot of people will miss him.

Casty: Moving this to Sports & News so it gets treated seriously and so people who skip over AG get to see it.

 

[BYH]

I guess we'll know now who his pallbearers are. (George Brett is one if I recall) RIP.

 

[Steak Snabler]

Here's the official release from the Yankees:

http://tinyurl.com/cwt59v

 

[Smasher_Sloan]

I hope the NY papers give Arthur his due. For those who don't know, he was the brother of longtime UPI sports editor Milton Richman.

When the Richman brothers were kids, they befriended some St. Louis Browns players and actually wound up making train trips with the Browns. That started an amazing life in baseball.

Arthur knew everybody in baseball, knew every good restaurant in every MLB city. There was a story when he moved from the Mets to Yankees, NL to AL, he said to a friend with much trepidation, "Where am I going to eat?" He got up to speed on the AL quickly, of course.

Also for those who don't know, he carried a list of those he had chosen to be pallbearers and would often show it to people.

Wonderful guy who will be missed.

 

[bristolex]

Anyone who had the pleasure of spending a few minutes around Arthur Richman is better for it. He was a sweet gentle man who loved the game of baseball.

He loved his "toddies" and as someone else had mentioned was known by everyone in baseball. On a few occasions sat with him in dugout watching BP and there was always a stream of visiting players going out of their way to say hi to Arthur. George Brett was the best man at his wedding.

In his life experiences he almost lead a Forrest Gump like existence. One of the great stories he liked to tell was how he was out drinking with Don Larsen the night before his perfect game. He also told a story about how he was with JFK in Tampa the day before the fateful trip to Dallas.

RIP Pallie

 

[The Big Ragu]

Some really nice stories today. It's obvious by how personal the stories that Richman was a guy who really did know everyone and touch them in one way or another. Here are a few.

Jeff Pearlman:
http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2009/writers/jeff_pearlman/03/27/arthur.richman/

Jack Curry's Blog in NY Times:
http://bats.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/03/25/remembering-arthur-richman-83-a-baseball-lifer/?em

Newsday:
http://www.newsday.com/sports/baseball/yankees/ny-spmarcus0327,0,3553071.column

 

[Smasher_Sloan]

Great stories that capture the unique essence of Arthur.

 

[gingerbread]

My first day covering the Yankees many years ago, Arthur introduces himself, gives me a brief (for him) synopsis on who he is (leading with how he convinced Steinbrenner to hire Torre) and proceeds to call me "Dolly." I'm sure he called many females "Dolly," but the way he said it to me always made me smile. Especially when we were having a few toddies.

Arthur, you'll be missed.
Cheers,
Dolly

 

[gingerbread]

I've just read Penny Crone's comment following the Newsday column, confirming I wasn't the lone Dolly. There are probably hundreds of Dollies, and we're all better for it. Arthur always treated the women around baseball with respect. (I'm assuming it's the real Penny Crone, a NY TV legend for many reasons).

Here's what she wrote:
I always loved spending time with Arthur. He was funny, fair and caring. He loved being able to sit up in his office and watch the games. Often times baseball greats would join him and his door was always open for me. He called me Dolly when he got older and always said, Hi Dolly, do you need any money. I will miss you Arthur, I will miss you a lot.

 

[Smasher_Sloan]

Penny is big in real estate now, I believe.

I'm amazed and pleased that all of the reflections do such a good job of capturing the Arthur-ness that made him unique.

 

[Drip]

One of the nicest men that I ever met in baseball. He was proud of his brother, Milton, who was an outstanding journalist.
Arthur ALWAYS had time to speak. Even when all hell was breaking loose, he remain himself. He was a company guy but he also understood what you had to do.
You will be missed.
RIP